Dear diary (race related)

[Max Gosey]

Today I was on the Eldora website. They have race programs. Maybe for college kids, maybe not. All those guys on TGR are racers. Well some of them. And J Nobis was a racer, and he's good. If I want to be good, I have to be a racer, don't I, diary?

But seriously, I'm wondering how happy you gate-bashers are that you did it. I've never done any racing of any sort, but I LOVE to go fast, and from what I understand, racing is a great way to become a better skier all around. I just got some 188 P40's from Summit that still have some life in them, and my boots are plenty stiff. Don't know what other investments are necessarily involved in recreational racing.

As it stands, my first class in the fall on tues & thurs is 2 pm. Eldora has an "ability level" race program, J1 for 17&18 year olds (they're hopefully getting back to me on the details of this), $1495 for 2 days a week.

You maggots who have skied with me know I pretty much suck and need all the help I can get. Worth it? Better off just going to lots of clincs and camps instead?

Any thoughts on racing in general (aside from discourse on the World Cup) is very much appreciated (particularly what else you need besides a helmet, spandex speedsuit, stiff skinny skis, and stiff boots. I won't be skiing slalom because I'm not very quick). Thanks, guys.

[iceman]

Funny, when you mentioned race I thought you were going somewhere else entirely.

As you have done before.

[Max Gosey]

Funny, when you mentioned race I thought you were going somewhere else entirely.

As you have done before.

Once, if I recall correctly. And I regret it. And I apologized. And it was like a year and a half ago.

[shmerham]

Racing, for me, was a good experience, because I was a walk-on "b team" member. This meant there was no pressure to perform, I didn't have to make the team, I didn't have to practice if I didn't want to, and on top of that, my "a teammates" were a bunch of drunks. Additionally, it got me an extra 2 days (or nights, rather) of skiing each week.

I learned a lot (which is probably hard to believe considering I'm not that good now). You get to go fast for starters. None of my teammates were into slalom much. Even when they were on slalom skis, if they weren't on the course, they were going 40+ mph all the time. I got a lot better at turning and carving. Where racing translates to freeskiing best is that it forces you to turn in certain places and this a big help in trees and contoured and rocky areas. Taking that a step further, it forces you to setup your turns if you want to be fast. That also is a huge help in technical lines.

$1750 is a lot of money. I'd maybe recommend doing a bunch of NASTAR runs. The courses are kinda boring, but they can be fun when you have some people to compete against. Maybe take a weekend race clinic or two.

A lot of the GS courses I raced in college were turny and almost everyone was running skis in the 183 range.

Also, if you're not quick, maybe you should do slalom so that you can become quicker. That being said, I didn't enjoy slalom much at all.

[kailas]

It's the way to ski well, you have to learn to use you edges properly. I ski
raced for 16 years, got to ski almost every ski hill in the USA and Canada, plus
a few Europa cup races. Every good skier I know ski raced.

[YoEddy]

It's the way to ski well ... Every good skier I know ski raced.

Ditto that. Every good skier I've known grew up racing, but in the end I think it's all about the mileage. If you grew up racing then you were probably on skis a minimum of 3 days a week.
$1495 for two days a week is no bargain, but it could be worth it depending on what they have to offer. The cheapest & easiest way to get into gates has to be to buy a season pass for Nastar at the local hill.

[kailas]

It's not just mileage, if you watch a skier that raced for years and one that
just skied for years you'll see that the racer has a better foundation to their
skiing.

[road trip]

Racing is a lot of fun and like everybody else stated, it is a great way to get better in a season. While doing NASTAR races would be easier, you just don't get the same courses, you get zero instruction, and frankly you don't get nearly enough time in gates. Assuming you get a season's pass with your $1500 and are psyched for it... do it. It'll be a good time... and typically forces you to ski with better skiers which on its own makes you better.

[BigDaddy]

I did a season of "Adult racing"... got bored when I discovered there wasn't any nudity...

[Max Gosey]

Ya, I can see racing NASTAR as a possibility, but isn't the coaching one of the fundamental helpful aspects of racing? What's the price range of that, anyway? And does anyone know of any other race programs for a little less money?

PAGING SHERA. I heard a rumor you were doing some race thing at Keystone and were maybe looking for mags to race with, if I remember right. Got any details on that? It's a night thing, right? Would it be cool if I joined you? Shoot me a PM with some info or post here, please. Thanks.

Earliest I'm out of class is at noon, and that's Friday (this is the fall). I'm taking 17 pretty hard hours, so I'll probably take it pretty easy in the spring. Hopefully like 2 sciences and photog I for 13 hours. So I COULD do a Friday-Saturday thing MAYBE, unless I could get to X resort Friday night and one other night a week to race (I'm out at 4 Wed Thurs). Just gotta find details on what times these race programs usually happen.

Bottom line is I'll be studying A LOT in the fall, and I'm wondering A) is it worth the extra money for saving 4 hours of driving a week going to eldora (an hour each way twice) for more study time? and B) When do these programs usually kick off anyway? Eldora's race site has very little info, unfortunately.

But thanks for the thoughts. I'd probably spend close to $1500 on a camp anyway, and these seems to be a better investment.

One thing I haven't heard though is about gear. How many pairs of boards did you guys usually use, particularly shmerham, since you were in a similar situation? One GS and one slalom? One to rule them all? Just wondering what "hidden" expenses I'll encounter. Need to know if I can actually afford it. Glad the girlfriend likes waffle house and chicken fingers over fancy food.

[bdog]

Max,
Racing and coaching will make you a better overall skier. Period. And it can be fun ... or not. Pretty much sucks to be training gates on a powder day. As for gear, if all you are interested in is improving your skiing, what you have is fine. If you are serous about racing, and winning then you will need at a minimum one pair of GS skis and one pair of Slalom skis. If all you are interested in is technique I would not worry about a speed suit either. Again, if you are serious about winning then you will need one. Worry about that later. check around and find the best combination of coaching and cost. You won't regret the training even if you decide running gates is not for you.

[shmerham]

I had two pair: a pair of slalom skis and since I was a poor college student, for GS I used a pair of skiercross skis which doubled as my all mountain skis (I wasn't looking to win races, so perfect bases weren't a priority for me really and it wasn't really common to use fatter skis on the east coast at that time). I definitely wish I could've afforded arm and shin guards. I had some nasty bruises by the end of the season and I'm sure I was less aggressive because of it.

I think you could get away with a slalom ski and use it for gs too, honestly. Some of the current ones are really stable (fischers in particular, I believe), but you do have those P40's and race skis are pretty cheap these days.

You'll probably want tuning gear if you don't have it.

[Max Gosey]

Badass. I think I'm gonna do it. Just gotta find the right program now. Bdog, is there like a database/list of race programs somewhere? I'll google and see what I get.

Thanks for the advice, guys. I might thank you even more later.

[Max Gosey]

Found the Rocky Mountain Weekend Masters at Winter Park and Teamski (form your own team thing). Also contacted the racing director at CU. He's GOT to know something...

If anybody else knows of any race programs in the fall, shout out!!! Thanks!

[bdog]

I don't know of a national data base. Try the usst web site. I think it's usskiteam.com or something like that. Good call on contacting the coach at CU. I was going to recommend that. Best of luck Max. You'll have a good time and it will make you a better skier. Somehow I don't think you suck as much as you say you do.

[Max Gosey]

Thanks, man. If I ever make it back up to Windell's (possible indeed), I'll give you a shout and brews will be on me. All good info.

[Egon]

My experience racing in college was a drunken blur. Hope that helps.

[Max Gosey]

Not really. Hahaha.

I pretty much quit drinking besides a beer or two now and then. So that shouldn't really be a big concern... But I find it highly unlikely that I'll be doing any collegiate level stuff, anyway.

[brutah]

I used to race until I got old enough to make decisions for myself and the realization that only dogs chase sticks.

I don't know how much racing will benefit you now that you are older, coaching is good at any level, but you could go to a couple really cool clinics for that price tag that would probably be more geared to the type of skiing you want to get good at. Plus in my opinion racing was really boring and the boring factor was one of the biggest factors in me switching to freestyle.

[dipstik]

Absolutely do it, you won't regret it.

Here is my story:

I was pretty much a complete gaper until I started racing in middle school. I sucked pretty bad, but I still trained/raced with the team 3 days a week. For me, just being there and skiing through the gates allowed me to progress pretty quickly. Having a coach at the bottom of every run telling you what to fix is quite a luxury, and it helps you more than you would think.

Now I'm a sophomore in college and I'm still racing - except it's a lot more intense now. I'm training 2-3 days per week, with another 2 full days of racing on the weekends. I'm nowhere near the top of the pack for our league, but competing against and training with skilled racers has taught me more than freeskiing everyday ever could.


People that criticize racing don't realize how unbelievably fun and exciting it can be, so keep that in mind. There is something to be said about the feeling you get when you're standing in the starting gate, freezing your balls off, knowing that you need to ski as fast as you possibly can down an icy, steep, and occasionally dangerous course. You can't take it easy or be cautious just because the trail is steep and icy, you need to go as fast as your skis will take you, or else you'll be disappointing all your teammates that are crowded around you and cheering you on. It's a different feeling than skiing pow, but to me, it's more rewarding and just as exhilarating.


As for expenses, you'll end up spending more money than you want, but deals can be found everywhere. Especially if you buy used. A lot of racers have deep pockets/hook-ups, so they buy new skis every year and sell the old, even if the old gear is perfectly fine. Like others have said, you will need at least 2 pairs of skis. Some gear you might not have though of: 2 pairs of poles (GS & SL), shin guards, pole guards, a good helmet, and tuning stuff.

So for me, racing has been and continues to be a way for me to get faster, stronger, all around better.


A lot of scattered thoughts here, but that's what I got.

[Max Gosey]

Awesome. Made an offer today for some slalom skis (to a maggot). Was looking for (but couldn't find) shin guards and pole guards. Froogle searches didn't pull anything up, so search tips would be appreciated. I'll worry about that stuff when the time comes around.

How could being on the edge of control for a solid 2 minutes be boring?

[anti-horrible-money-requiring-disaster-jinx]I'm GONNA DOOOO IIIIT... Just not sure which program.[/A-H-M-R-D-J]

[MOHSHSIHd]

dude, ill sell you some SICKTER K2 Slalom 77 195s for way cheap...they fucking FLY


SHORT SKIS ARE FOR PUSSIES

[Dynasaur]

The Eldora race program is quite good. I'm not familiar with what goes on at the J1 level, but my son is in the J5 program and has become an outstanding skier.

The race program is not actually affiliated with Eldora, it is a private club.

The CU ski team trains at Eldora and were national champions for the 17th time this year, so it seems like it is probably an good place to train.

[Max Gosey]

dude, ill sell you some SICKTER K2 Slalom 77 195s for way cheap...they fucking FLY


SHORT SKIS ARE FOR PUSSIES

Slalom boards longer than dh boards. Hahaha.

I never believed the pussy short ski thing. Well not fully. ALL my skis are taller than I am, so I guess I bought into it a little, but thanks for the offer.... I'm gonna decline.

I might run a race naked though. That would be funny.

[brutah]

The Eldora race program is quite good. I'm not familiar with what goes on at the J1 level, but my son is in the J5 program and has become an outstanding skier.

The race program is not actually affiliated with Eldora, it is a private club.

Is Stefan Travis still coaching? i used to ski with him, he's a dope guy, your son is lucky to have him as a coach